TEWKSBURY - The Motel Caswell, owned by the Caswell family since 1955, is being sold to make way for a proposed bowling alley, restaurant and arcade.

The motel, which beat a federal government attempt to seize the property in 2013, is being sold for $2.1 million to a team led by the owner of Tewksbury Welding, town resident Donald MacLaren Jr.

"It's right up Tewksbury's alley for what they need," MacLaren said.

The proposed development, Wamesit Lanes, will include 45,000 square feet, with 32 bowling tenpin lanes, a restaurant and an arcade. Eight of the bowling lanes will be for parties or corporate events, and the facility will also include six simulated golf tees.

Rendering of the proposed project.

Russ Caswell of the motel's eponymous family said he tried to sell the hotel more than five years ago, but his efforts were stymied by the federal government which tried to seize the property under drug forfeiture laws.

"Obviously, I couldn't do it then and that case took four years," Caswell said. "Now that it's over, it's finally happening."

Caswell said the business is still good, "but like any business it has its difficulties. It's not horrible, but it's a lot of dealing with the public and any businessman who deals with the public know how that can be."

The sale of the 4.5-acre site, which is expected to close in the coming weeks, was cheered by town officials who said they looked forward to a family entertainment venue that would draw people to Tewksbury.

Advertisement

"It's something new, something exciting for the community," Selectman Scott Wilson said. "I'm also very happy for the Caswell family. After what happened with the federal government, this is a nice ending for a family that has been part of this community for a long, long time."

Wamesit Lanes will play off a Native American look, making a connection with the town's past and educating younger people with information on the Wamesit tribe, MacLaren said. MacLaren and other owners of the development, including his father, also Donald MacLaren, expect the facility to open as soon as the fall of 2015.

"I think it's a good addition to our Main Street," Selectman Bruce Panilaitis said. "It appears to be a great entertainment venue that until now you had to go to Lowell for," he added, referring to Brunswick Zone.

The proposal is especially exciting news for the town because of its location on Route 38/Main Street just south of Interstate 495, Selectmen Chairman Todd Johnson said.

"We're thrilled that, looking forward, there's going to be an attractive looking property there at essentially one of the gateway entrances to Tewksbury," he said.

"We're happy because it's creating jobs in the community," Town Manager Richard Montuori said. "It will draw people not only from the community but from other towns to use the facility, and maybe use other retailers."

Caswell made headlines in recent years with the federal property-forfeiture case.

In January 2013, U.S. Magistrate Judge Judith Dein found that the property was not subject to forfeiture and that Caswell met all the qualifications of an "innocent owner" who did not know of or consent to drug crimes taking place on his property.

Citing 15 incidents that took place from 1994 to 2008, prosecutors argued that the Motel Caswell facilitated drug trafficking and that motel staff did not take sufficient action to prevent drug crimes from occurring. But no statistical information about the level or type of crime at the motel was presented, Dein said.

According to testimony, police did identify the motel as a "high-crime area," along with two more Main Street properties, the Stadium Plaza parking lot and the Motel 6.

A Sun review of Tewksbury Police Department arrest logs from 2007 to 2012 showed that during those years, three other Main Street addresses saw more drug arrests than the Motel Caswell. While 19 drug arrests were made at the Motel Caswell, 26 each were made at 85 Main St., an address shared by Home Depot, Applebee's and Burger King, and 95 Main St, where the Motel 6 and IHOP are located. Twenty-four drug arrests were made at Walmart.

The new development will return bowling to the northern end of Tewksbury, where an duckpin alley once stood where Home Depot now stands up the street from Motel Caswell. MacLaren credited Russ Caswell for the sale finally taking place.

Welcome to your discussion forum: Sign in with a Disqus account or your social networking account for your comment to be posted immediately, provided it meets the guidelines. (READ HOW.)
Comments made here are the sole responsibility of the person posting them; these comments do not reflect the opinion of The Sun. So keep it civil.

ODESSA, Texas (AP) — A West Texas man has been charged with impersonating an officer by using sirens and flashing lights to skip to the head of the drive-thru line at a fast-food restaurant. Full Story

Sufjan Stevens, "Carrie & Lowell" (Asthmatic Kitty) Plucked strings and pulsing keyboards dominate the distinctive arrangements on Sufjan Stevens' latest album, and in the absence of a rhythm section, they serve to keep time. Full Story